Phoenix Suns Beat Milwaukee Bucks to Creep Closer to .500

Gortat the Great made another appearance Wednesday as the Phoenix Suns knocked off the Milwaukee Bucks at US Airways Arena 92-77. Marcin Gortat, the Polish import who came to the Suns in a December trade, continued his weeklong string of stellar play for the Suns, scoring 19 points and pulling...

By Jay Bennett

February 3, 2011

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Gortat the Great made another appearance Wednesday as the Phoenix Suns knocked off the Milwaukee Bucks at US Airways Arena 92-77. Marcin Gortat, the Polish import who came to the Suns in a December trade, continued his weeklong string of stellar play for the Suns, scoring 19 points and pulling down 11 rebounds. It was his third straight game of the scoring 19 or more points for the Suns. For the Bucks, it was their 23rd straight loss in Phoenix.

For the Suns, it was their third consecutive win -- a streak that started with last Friday's upset of the Boston Celtics -- and, once again, they find themselves flirting with the .500 mark. They stand at 23-24 before their home date with the newly powerful Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday night.

The Suns are still two games out of a playoff slot in the Western Conference, with the Memphis Grizzlies 1.5 games ahead of the Suns and the Portland Trail Blazers currently occupying what would be the eighth seed.

But for now, the Suns are enjoying what looks like a small turnaround in the season, thanks to Gortat. "I already said many times, my confidence is pretty big right now. I have a lot of fun from playing basketball," Gortat said after the game. He also continued to praise Steve Nash, who had 13 assists and nine points on the night.

Grant Hill, Jared Dudley, and Channing Frye all hit double figures with 16, 15, and 14 points, respectively.

Friday's game against the Thunder (31-17) tips off at 7 p.m. at US Airways Center. TV: Fox Sports Arizona. Radio: KTAR 620 AM. More info: www.suns.com

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